Elevator Facts that you Probably Didn't Know

What Goes up Must Come Down: 8 Elevator Facts you Probably Didn’t Know!

It is with great thanks to the elevator industry that cities around the world are able to thrive the way that they do. Amid the hustle and bustle of busy city life elevators have forever changed the way we live, work, and travel. We now have the ability to reside in apartments and penthouses hundreds of feet above ground level. We board elevator that take us to offices and boardrooms stories beyond the city below. With elevators playing such a crucial role in our society, Citywide Elevator Consultants focus on a full range of services for all types of vertical transportation. Whether it is new construction and modernization of major hotels, universities, government facilities, commercial and residential buildings, or retail locations Citywide can provide consulting for all your elevator needs!

Below are 8 fascinating facts about elevators!

1.     Luxury hotels were the first establishments to use the modern elevator. In 1857the first passenger elevator was installed in a NYC hotel. The advancing technology eventually reached office buildings in the 1870s. Businesses were then able to expand up rather than out.

2.     America alone has over 900,000 elevators.

 3.     Elevators were first considered “movable rooms”.Most elevators featured elaborate furniture, carpeting, and chandeliers. Prior to reaching their final destination passengers were able to sit back and relax!

4.     No elevators, no penthouses.Before the elevator, the highest floor of a home or building would be used for servants or low rent tenants. The lower class would be subjected to hike up several floors. The wealthy, on the other hand, would have the luxury of living on the easily accessible floors. Once elevators were introduced, the rich began to appreciate the view from the top and the penthouse was born!

5.     Elevators enable us to expand our cities up rather than out.Without elevators buildings would only be built five or six stories high. In the 1870s Henry B. Boyle, CEO of Equitable Life Assurance Society, forever changed New York City’s financial district. He built the tallest building in the city, seven stories high. This building included two elevators!

6.     In the 1900s as elevators gained popularity, people worried that vertical transportation would make them sick. Doctors even came up with the idea of “elevator sickness.” They described this as a condition caused by the sudden movement of internal organs as an elevator came to a stop.

7.     Awkward encounters. Back in the day when men were expected to take off their hats in the presence of a woman, people couldn’t determine whether or not an elevator was to be considered a room. This left many men confused about the appropriate gesture when riding an elevator with a woman.

8.     A destination dispatch system is high tech feature found on new elevator systems. This system permits passengers to enter their desired floor onto a screen or tablet prior to entering the elevator.  The elevator uses this information to group riders by floor, directing them to a particular elevator. Passengers could also have a programmable card which would reduce the use of the hall call buttons, making rides much more efficient.